Snow melting furnace



June 17, 1952 5, o mc 2,601,116

SNOW MELTING FURNACE Filed Aug. 27, 1948 2 SHEETS-SHEET l IN VENTOR.

Y? 5227/7/65 J 60rm'ck June 17, 1952 s. .1. GORNICK ,60 16 SNOW MELTING FURNACE Filed Aug. 27, 1948 2 SHEETSSHEET 2 IN V EN TOR.

Jfaw/ey d 6007/04.

Patented June 17, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SNOW MELTING FURNACE Stanley J. Gornick, Milwaukee, Wis.

Application August 27, 1948, Serial No. 46,443

' 4 Claims. 1

This inventionrelates to the disposal of snow from streets and intersections and more particularly to a furnace adapted to dispose of the snow by melting.

It is an object of this invention to provide a suitable portable furnace which will operate to clear thoroughfares of snow or the like.

Another object is to provide a suitable snow melting furnace which will be free from clogging.

A further object is to provide a suitable snow melting furnace which may be moved from place to place conveniently.

A still further object is to provide a snow melting furnace which will collect the water from melted snow, for selective disposal.

A further object of the invention is to provide a snow melting furnace which will deliver the snow to the heated plates in slices.

Another object is to provide a snow melting furnace which will melt snow rapidly.

Still further objects will become apparent from the following specification which, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrates a preferred form of the invention.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of the snow melting furnace mounted on a truck;

Fig. 2 is a front elevational view of the loading conveyor;

Fig. 3 is a transverse cross-section through the snow melting furnace and is a cross-section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; and

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal cross-section through the snow melting furnace, taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring to the drawings. a truck Ill has a chassis l2 supported from wheels l3l3, a motor compartment 14 containing the motive power, and a cab l5.

Asnow melting furnace, generally designated l8, to be described in detail hereinafter, is mounted on the chassis l2, and has a continuous belt conveyor 20 discharging thereinto. The conveyor, shown in Figs. 1 and 2, may comprise a frame 2| carried on one end by the truck I and on the forward end by wheels 22 which contact the road surface. The frame may be rotated about its truck supported end to lift the wheels 22 off the ground while changing the location of operations. A continuous belt 23 passes over rollers 24, 25, 26 and 21, and has buckets or scoops 30 fixed thereon which scoop the snow off the road surface, lift it up to the top of the furnace, and discharge it onto the heated surfaces in the furnace.

The conveyor 20 may be driven by a power take-01f shaft 32, from the transmission of the truck l0 (not shown), through bevel gears 33-33. Operation of the conveyor may be controlled from the cab.

Referring now to Figs. 3 and 4 for details of the furnace [8, it may be built with a shell 35 of sheet steel, or the like, lined with fire brick 31 suitably bonded to the shell. The fire brick 37 defines a fire box 38 into which a combustible mixture of oil and air is injected through a suitable burner 40.

The fire from the burner 40 passes through spaced passages the sides of which comprise sloping plates 44 which are supported between transverse plates 46 and 41. The plates 44 are connected alternately at their tops and bottoms, the bottom connections forming troughs to collect water from the melting snow. As the fire travels through the passages between the plates 44 it heats the plates and passes out through apertures 45 in the transverse plate 46 into a manifold 48. The hot gases collected in the manifold 48 return to a collecting chamber 56 through a plurality of cutting pipes 52. As the gases pass through the cutting pipes they heat the pipes so that as snow falls upon the hot pipes it is divided into slices and falls upon the plates 44 in sheets.

The chamber 50 is separated from the fire box 38 by a plate 54. The chamber '50 forms a collector for the hot gases and discharges the gases into a flue 55.

Vertical cold cutting knives 56 are provided between the hot cutting pipes 52. The cold knives 56 extend substantially parallel to the sides or plates 44 of the upright passages 43 to press the snow against the hot walls 44 of the passages 43 and cause it to melt.

The water from the melted snow is conducted through pipes 58 to a collecting tank 60. The water thus collected in the tank 66 may be drained from the tank 60 into a sewer through a valve 6| in the bottom of the tank. The valve 6| may be operated by a handle 62 protruding from the side of the truck.

Operation In operation, the truck conveyor 2|] is raised off the ground and the truck driven to the location desired to be cleared of snow. The conveyor is then lowered until the wheels 22 rest on the ground and the power is then supplied to the take off shaft 32 to drive the conveyor '20.

The conveyor 20 lifts the snow from the road surface and delivers it to the top of the snow melting furnace I 8. The snow from the conveyor falls onto the hot pipes 52 and the cold cutting knives 56 where it is sliced into sheets and falls down onto the outer surfaces of the upright furnace walls or plates 44.

As the snow moves down the heated walls or plates 44, it is held in contact with the plates 54 by the knives 56 and is melted.

The water from the melting snow runs down through the pipes 58 into the tank 60. When de' sired the valve 6| may be opened to drain the tank.

It will be understood that the hereinbefore tie scribed form of the invention is to be taken as a preferred embodiment thereof, and that'variotis' changes in size, shape, and arrangement of parts may be made without departing from thespirit of the invention or the scope of the subjoin'd' claims. N

That which isclaimed as new arid is desired to be secured by United states Letters Patent is;

l; in a snow melting furnace having means to receive snow on the top the'reof, a plurality of upright plates extending downwardly from said means, means to heat saidplates; a] morality of cold knives defining passageways adjacent an substantially parallel to said plates; and a pm: rality of pipes supported between the plates and the knives, said pipes being heated by said last named means, and adapted to cut the snow and deliver it in sheets to the spaces between the knives and the plates.

2. A snow nielting furnace of the character described comprising", a; snow receiving chamber, end plates depending from sai'd chamber,- sloping plates joining said end plates and forming alternate passages anssntw fiiltiijg chambers therebetween, means to supply neat to said passages to heat the plates and melt the snow, means connecting adjacent sloping plates adjacent their lower ends to form troughs thereb'etw'e'en to re ceive melted snow, a' water collecting tank b'eneath said furnace;- an'dpipe's connecting the bot toms of the troughswitli the water tank to; drain water from" the melted collected in the troughs into said tank.

3. A snow melting furnace of the character described comprising, a snow receiving chamber, a pair of spaced end plates depending from said chamber having apertures therein, sloping plates joining said spaced plates to define alternate passageways through said apertures and snow melting spaces adjacent said apertures, means to supply heat to said plates, means connecting the ends of adjacent plfatesfto form troughs, a water tank beneath said furnace and pipes connecting the bottoms of said troughs with the water tank to drain water from the troughs.

4; A snow melting furnace including a fire box atone end thereof, a plurality of upright plates joined at their upper and lower ends and extendingilorigitudinally of said furnace from said fire box to form passages for burning gases from the fire box, whereby I said plates are heated through contact with the hot gases, a manifold at one end of said plates adapted to collect the burning gases passing said mates, a chamber at the opposite end of said furnace from san manifold, a plurality of cutting pipes extending substantially' horizontally from saigimaniro u to said chamber to transmit gases therebetween, and a chimney opehing from Said c'hlfiib'i t6 the atino's'phere. I v I STANLEY J GORNICK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED PATENTS 

